Glowing Obergabelhorn
Diamond of the Alps
About the work
To take this portrait ofObergabelhorn, I skied to the Mountet hut to spend the night. While it was -20°C outside, the temperature barely rose to 5°C inside the hut. Long before daybreak, while the cold was still biting, I gained altitude, climbed several hundred meters and walked for long hours to reach this viewpoint that I know so well. To be there when the first light illuminates the horizon and reflects off the mountain. My expeditions are always uncertain, and I never know whether the work I dream of will one day become reality. I study the weather beforehand and choose the season that will best enhance the image I carry within me. The snow and wind conditions also have to be ideal, and my photographic equipment has to be willing to work in such temperatures. And sometimes, miracles do happen. As on this wonderful morning in April 2021. The fabulous appearance ofObergabelhorn like a star shining in the dark. 8 seconds of exposure time to capture a light still invisible to the naked eye.
This forgotten jewel of the Alps gradually melts away. To my great despair, the mountain is evolving more and more each year. Its routes change, its face is transformed, its glaciers open up. Access to its north face will soon be impossible. Johann Filliez, my mountain guide, recently told me thatObergabelhorn would soon be nothing but a pile of rocks. The diamond will return to being a mere rock, and the mountain I love so much will become a memory. So, more determined than ever, I photograph it tirelessly. Feeling that nature has entrusted me with the primordial mission of perpetuating the heritage of the high mountains. So that its splendor never quite disappears, and future generations can also admire the vanished beauty of this celestial kingdom.
print art
Limited Edition
Certificate and Signature
suggestions from Thomas Crauwels
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